Black mulch! It really pops. We just upgraded our mulch with black and it’s a game-changer.

Black mulch is in the plan. Should have mentioned we are getting rid of all the wood chips currently in the beds. Trying to add another picture where the lighting is better, but Houzz is being difficult.

Your house is beautiful!! So welcoming!
I’m no landscape expert…. I think I’d do boxwoods in the back. Two rows. Along the front of the house.

A big planter on each side of the steps.

And maybe flowers in front of the boxwoods.

Replace the trees on the sides for something less short and stout. Lol.

Black mulch yes! 💖💖

Beautiful beautiful!

Two words: Russian Sage. Beautiful blue flowers (perennial) and deer proof. Create some free-form planting beds to replace some lawn areas and also near the front door. You local nursery will have plants for your Zone and for deer. This is an easy DIY method. Have fun. Use rock and stepping stones, too.

Here is a link for inspo photos.

https://www.houzz.com/photos/query/planting-russian-sage

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to be fair, I would think hiring a landscape company/architect would go along way with getting the right thing here.

Super quick mock up… just for inspiration… running out, BBL

So lovely house!! I would widen steps ( even visually with gravel), making more inviting entrance.

Some ideas

or with more drama :-))

With plants I would go take a look at some you like but make sure it works with the amount of sunlight. Some plant need certain amount of sunlight.

Thanks for all of these excellent suggestions and for the mock ups! We have decided to get a professional to help us with the final design and will include your suggestions. The mock ups really help us visualize what it can look like!

We are in an HOA, albeit a laid back one, so will run these ideas past them to make sure we aren’t making mistakes there.

So appreciative of your help, thank you all again. I’ll post results when the work is done, hopefully in six weeks or so.

Sorry for the delayed time in responding. It took longer than we anticipated for the work to begin (and be completed). We look forward to seeing the front plantings fill in over the next couple of years as these plants grow. Everything in the garden beds are on a drip system, are deer resistant, and hopefully will do well as they mature. I’ve also included a picture of the back yard which underwent the biggest transformation. It was all grass with plastic borders, and now it’s an area we will actually use. Will be on the hunt for outdoor furniture, but in the meantime, this is how is looks. We are very pleased!

Thanks to everyone who offered their advice - Houzz is such a great community.

PS, the dirt areas around the two trees and near the fireplace patio will be hydroseeded on Monday. Areas outside the curbing are all mulched.

Very nice. The street trees are a nice addition. I would re-work the two arched symmetrical eyebrow lines where the border meets the bottom of the stairs.

The new paint looks great, and your home is beautiful. One of the first questions we ask a new client is, “How do you plan to use the space?” If you want a front porch, seating, and room for a fire pit, that’s an entirely different design than a formal landscape with large and manicured flower beds. Some base recommendations- build out your flower beds with a curved border. Add some visually attractive trees to balance the height of the home (weeping spruces and aspens are great in that area). Here are some ideas we’ve used in projects in Utah where we’ve built out the flower beds and balanced the front yard.